Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL
| romaji = Yūgiō Zearu | other = | genre = }} TV Tokyo, BS Japantv-tokyo.co.jp onair | network other =* Toonzai on CW4Kids | first aired = April 11, 2011tv-tokyo.co.jp Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL | last aired = | num of episodes = 39 as of January 16, 2012 | ref = }} Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL (pronounced zay-al zeɪal in Japanese, pronounced zek-sul in English) is a Yu-Gi-Oh! anime and manga series, set in the near future as the successor to the Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's series. The anime first aired on April 11, 2011 in popular evening slots in Japan on TV Tokyo.animenewsnetwork.com News: Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal Anime, Manga Revealed It introduces the Xyz Summon mechanic and Xyz Monsters. It also starts the use of the Series 7 card layout replacing the Series 3 layout used in later episodes of [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (second series anime)|''Yu-Gi-Oh!]], and the majority of episodes of ''Yu-Gi-Oh! GX and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. The English dubbed version premiered on October 15, 2011 on the CW4KIDS Toonzai. Characters :See: Category:Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL characters * Yuma Tsukumo * Ryoga Kamishiro * Astral * Tori Meadows * Kari Tsukumo * Haru Tsukumo * Bronk Stone * Kaito Tenjo * Cathy * Flip Summary In a city in the near future, Heartland, kids and adults are nuts about Augmented Reality Duels. Augmented Reality Duels are Duels that use Duel Gazers and D-Pads, which when the two are used together, whether on the ground or in the sky, cause monsters to erupt from buildings and fight each other; it's a super-charged duel! But there's no one in town who's crazier about dueling than our hero, Yuma Tsukumo. At a beginner level, he's a Champion at absolutely losing. Due to a chain of events, Yuma ends up challenging the number one delinquent at his school, Ryoga. The Duel before him will greatly change Yuma's destiny...! A bizarre door that usually appears in Yuma's dreams suddenly shows up in the midst of this fight. When Yuma unlocks this sealed door, countless lights fly from it and escape. And when Yuma comes to, he sees the mysterious entity, Astral, who came from a parallel universe, standing before him. In order to regain Astral's lost memories, the flying lights from the door that have turned into the 99 "Numbers" Cards, these two must work together. Just what is the purpose for Astral's appearance in our world? And what on earth is with these new monsters known as "Numbers"? A series of mysterious and powerful rivals begin to appear before Yuma and Astral, slowly unraveling the mystery... Manga The ''Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL manga is written by Shin Yoshida, illustrated by Naoto Miyashi and published by Shueisha. Unlike Yu-Gi-Oh! GX and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, the Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL manga was released before the anime and follows the same story as the anime up until Rank 009. The series is set in the near future. Something unexpected happens as Ryoga Kamishiro challenges Yuma Tsukumo to a Duel. When the mysterious entity Astral appears before them a new legend begins.V Jump scan. Music Japanese opening theme 1: Masterpiece * Performer: Mihimaru GT * Episodes: 001-025 Japanese ending theme 1: My Quest * Performer: Golden Bomber * Episodes: 001-025 Japanese opening theme 2: BRAVING! * Performer: KANAN * Episodes: 026- Japanese ending theme 2: Longing Freesia * Performer: DaizyStripper * Episodes: 026- English theme: Take a Chance Episodes Development An encore screening of Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D Bonds Beyond Time on February 20, 2011 in Japan contained details on the production of Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. The second 2011 issue of Weekly Shonen Jump included details of the screening a competition on how one hundred and ten readers can win passes to see it.animenewsnetwork.com New Yu-Gi-Oh! Series to Be Announced in February 4Kids confirmed that an English-language dub would premiere on October 15th at 9:30 AM. Differences in adaptations * Some names are Americanized. * The names on the Duelist's picture are removed. * Skirts are lengthened. * Astral's lower body appears to be blurred. * In the English version, whenever a person is being controlled by a Number, a deep voice is heard saying "Let the Number take hold!" * Rice balls and other cultural references are sometimes removed. * While more closer to the original than most english adaptions of Yu-Gi-Oh!, dialogue is altered to include more jokes. Staff The following staff are credited. Trivia * There has been no mention or the action of Synchro Summoning or Ritual Summon in the series so far. ** Although "Iron Chain Dragon" was seen in episode 1's preview, and Dark Tuner Nightmare Hand was seen in both the episode and preview for episode 1. ** Although neither Synchro or Tuner monsters are seen nor mentioned in the series, they have been seen on other cards, "Counselor Lily" → "Attraffic Control". * There have been Fusion, Xyz Summon and Tribute Summons. * Duel Disks vary in styles (variety of different Duel Disks). * This series is the most closest to game mechanic than the other series, mostly because this series can perform more monster Setting; in other series, players would usually Summon a monster in face-up Defense Position rather than face-down. External links * tv-tokyo.co.jp Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL official site References ZEXAL, Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL, Yu-Gi-Oh!